Magnetic slide device and magnetic slide-typed blind system

ABSTRACT

A magnetic slide device which can move a movable body in a sealed interior space by magnetic attraction between a magnet fixture attached on the movable body and a operational handle having a magnet(s) located outside of the sealed interior space. Further, a magnetic on/off switching means which comprises a turning handle mounted rotatably in a housing, provides a doorknob to be used as the turning handle of the magnetic slide device. The magnetic slide device and the on/off switching means are applicable to a magnetic slide-typed window or glass door blind system that could make slim the sealed double pane window or glass door having a internal blind therebetween and does not need the outer mechanical or electrical connection for actuating the internal blind, so that the internal blind can be maintained cleanly within the sealed window or glass door assembly during the use.

PRIORITY

This application claims priority from the Korean Patent Application No. 2004-0037260, filed on May 25, 2004, which is incorporated in full herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a magnetic slide device for displacing a movable body enclosed and sealed by a hollow body and a magnetic slide-typed blind system using the magnetic slide device.

2. Description of the Related Art

Generally, curtains, blinds and verticals of fabric, plastic, metal and so on are used in windows or glass doors for screening off them. And various systems for opening and closing the curtains, blinds and verticals have been developed.

These curtains, blinds and verticals are exposed to atmosphere including dust and moisture, so that they have maintenance and sanitary problems. In order to solve these problems, it was developed a sealed double pane window having a movable blind therein, which is actuated (opening/closing the internal blind) by a wire or an electrical device. Such a sealed double pane window having a blind therein need a complex devices mounted on or around the window for actuating the internal blind, so that the window inevitably becomes bulky and thick. Further, the window should have a through-hole(s), opened to the outside, for passing a wire or permitting an electric connection leaded to the internal blind, so that dust and moisture flowing into the through-hole remains as an unsolved problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide a magnetic slide device and a magnetic slide-typed window or glass door blind system that could make slim the sealed double pane window or glass door having a blind therein and does not need the outer connection for actuating the internal blind. Therefore, the internal blind can be completely sealed with the double panes and the frames to be protected from dust and moisture, so that it can be maintained cleanly during the use.

Another object of the invention is to provide a magnetic slide device having an on/off switching means which can switch two mutually facing magnets from “on” mode to “off” mode or vice versa for magnetic coupling and decoupling, so that a handle for the magnetic slide device of the invention can be used as a doorknob or a window knob.

Another object of the invention is to provide a magnetic blind system which can be combined in a window together with the conventional blind system such as a curtain, a vertical, another roll blind etc.

The foregoing and other objects are accomplished by a magnetic slide device and a magnetic slide-typed blind system according to the present invention.

The magnetic slide device of the invention includes a plurality of walls defining a sealed interior space; a magnet fixture which is attached on an movable body, preferably a plate or a sheet, located in the sealed interior space and has a magnet(s) fixed in contact with a wall defining the sealed interior space; and an operational handle which is located outside of the sealed interior space and has a magnet(s) in contact with the wall of the sealed interior space and facing the magnet(s) of the fixture with its polarity reversed thereto. The magnetic slide device allows the movable body to be displaced within the sealed interior space by the handle along the wall of the hollow body.

Preferably, the magnetic slide device further includes a guide rail for guiding the operational handle is attached across the wall, in which the operational handle is mounted slidably.

Preferably, the magnetic slide device further includes an on/off switching means. The magnetic on/off switching means comprises the magnet fixture and an operational handle having a housing and a turning handle mounted rotatably within the housing. And the magnets of the fixture and the turning handle are aligned with their two poles N and S disposed on the wall side by side, respectively. Alternatively, the fixture and the turning handle includes a pair of magnets, respectively, and the magnets of the pair are spaced apart in the fixture and the handle and the magnets face the wall with their polarity reversed to each other such as poles N and S or poles S and N for strong magnetic attraction.

The present invention also provides a magnetic slide-typed window or glass door blind system. The blind system includes a sealed window or glass door assembly having a pair of panes and a plurality of frames, a roll blind installed between the pair of panes, a winding means mounted on a frame and connected to an edge of the roll blind for winding and unwinding the roll blind, a magnet fixture attached on the other edge portion of the roll blind and located in contact with a pane of the sealed window or glass door assembly, an operational handle having a magnet(s) located outside of the pane of the assembly in which the magnet(s) is arranged with its polarity reversed to the magnet(s) of the magnet fixture attached on the roll blind, and a rail member for guiding the operational handle, which is installed across the pane.

Preferably, the magnetic slide typed blind system further includes an on/off switching means in which the operational handle has a housing and a turning handle mounted therein, so that the turning handle can be used as a doorknob by relieving the magnetic attraction by using the on/off switching means without changing the blind conditions.

Further, the present invention provides a combined blind system consisting of a magnetic slide-typed blind system according to present invention and a conventional blind system to be used as a complex blind system for providing a blind system for wide window, a patio door, a sliding window, etc.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above objects and other advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail the preferred embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawings in which:

(A) and (B) of FIG. 1 are a perspective view and a cross sectional view illustrating a magnetic slide device according to the present invention, respectively;

(A) and (B) of FIG. 2 are a front view and a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a magnetic slide device having on/off switching means according to the present invention, respectively;

(A) and (B) of FIG. 3 are cross sectional views illustrating “on”-mode and “off”-mode of on/off switching means of the magnetic slide device according to an embodiment of the invention, respectively;

(A) and (B) of FIG. 4 are cross sectional views illustrating “on”-mode and “off”-mode of on/off switching means of the magnetic slide device according to another embodiment of the invention, respectively;

(A) and (B) of FIG. 5 are cross sectional views illustrating embodiments of a magnetic slide device having on/off switching means and friction decreasing means according to the present invention, respectively;

FIG. 6 is a front view of a magnetic slide-typed blind system using the magnetic slide device according to the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a disassembled perspective view of the magnetic slide-typed blind system using the magnetic slide device according to the present invention; and,

FIG. 8 is a front view illustrating a combined blind system of the magnetic slide-typed blind system and the conventional blind system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Magnetic Slide Device

FIG. 1 illustrates schematically a magnetic slide device of the invention for displacing a sheet or plate between a pair of panes. As shown in A and B of FIG. 1, a sheet body 1 installed between a pair of panes 10 and 20 could be displaced magnetically by an operational handle 40 located outside of and in contact with a pane 20. A magnet fixture 30 having a magnet(s) is attached on an edge of the sheet body 1 and the operational handle 40 having a magnet(s) with its polarity reversed to the magnet(s) of the fixture 30 are magnetically interconnected through the pane 20. It is found that friction between the pane and the pair of the normally coated magnets is so low to move easily by hand a weight body attached to the magnet.

An on/off switching means for magnets facilitates coupling and decoupling magnetically a pair of magnets for the magnet fixture and the handle for various purposes. FIG. 2 shows on/off switching means for a magnetic slide device according to the present invention. As shown, the on/off switching means comprises a turning handle 50 which can be rotated clockwise and anticlockwise in a housing 51 by hand.

The housing 51 has a hollow or open-faced space 54 therein for receiving the turning handle 50 and holding a magnet(s) rotatably, and the housing 51 can move together with the handle 50. A guide rail 60 is installed fixedly across the pane 20 for holding the housing 51. It is preferred that the housing 51 has a rectangular shape, so that the housing 51 is slidable along the guide rail 60 but it is prevented from being rotated in the guide rail 60.

As shown in FIG. 2, the turning handle 50 has a stopper 56 extending outwardly from the peripheral surface of the handle 50, and the housing 51 has semicircular opening 54 through which the stopper 56 of the handle 50 is extended outwardly. The semicircular opening 54 have a pair of stopper receiving grooves 52 and 53 at the both ends. The grooves 52 and 53 have resilient latches at the inlet to hold the stopper 56 therein. Therefore, the turning handle 50 and the housing 51 are interlocked by lock of the stopper 56 and either one of the grooves 52 and 53. And the turning handle 50 is rotatable about 180 degrees from “on” position to “off” position within the housing 51.

Referring to FIG. 3, on/off switching means for the magnet of the fixture (30) in the pane 20 and the magnet of the turning handle 51 outside of the pane 20 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 3, the magnetic slide device according to one embodiment of the invention comprises a fixed magnet 35 mounted in the magnet fixture 30 and a movable magnet 55 mounted in the turning handle 50. Further, the fixed magnet 35 and the movable magnet 55 mutually face at the opposite sides of the pane 20. And the fixed magnet 35 and the movable magnet 55 are aligned with their two poles N and S disposed on the pane 20 side by side. Accordingly, when the two magnets 35 and 55 face reversely in polarity, they attract each other to form “on” mode (A) in which the magnet fixture 30 and the turning handle 50 are interlocked. On the contrary, when the two magnets 35 and 55 mutually face the same in polarity, they repulse each other to form “off” mode (B) in which the fixture 30 and the turning handle 50 are unlocked. Accordingly, rotation of the turning handle 50 within the housing 51 switches on/off modes between two magnets 35 and 55.

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the invention in which the magnet fixture 30 and the turning handle 50 comprise a pair of magnets 35′, 35′ and 55′55′ facing the pane 20 with their pole N or S only, respectively, which are spaced apart and face the pane 20 with the polarity reversed in each pair of the magnets 35′, 35′ or 55′, 55′ such as poles N and S or poles S and N in the pair. This embodiment has a merit to effect strong magnetic attraction with two pairs of the magnets 35′, 35′ and 55′, 55′. Accordingly, this embodiment is applicable to a window or a glass door having thick panes or consisting of panels of insulating material having low permeability.

FIG. 5 shows another embodiment of the magnet fixture 30 and the turning handle 50 in which friction of the contact surfaces between the magnet fixture 30 and the pane 20 and between the turning handle 50 and the pane 20 can be lowered for improving mobility of the magnetic slide device. The magnet fixture 30 and the turning handle 50 have rollers 70 or balls 80 mounted on the surfaces for contacting the pane 20, respectively. The rollers 70 and balls 80 of the fixture 30 and the turning handle 50 can decrease friction with the pane 20.

The magnetic slide device of the invention is applicable to any kind of a hollow body having a flat wall to move a movable body enclosed therein or is applicable to any kind of insulating panels to move a movable body insulated by the panel as well as the double pane window or the glass door. Accordingly, the magnetic slide device of the invention is not restricted in its application to the blind system for a window or a glass door as described below.

Magnetic Slide-Typed Blind System

Basically, the magnetic slide device of the invention is applicable to a blind system for windows or glass doors having roll blinds, roll screens, foldable blinds, verticals of fabrics, plastic, or metal within the window or glass door assembly having a pair of panes and frames for sealing the panes.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show a glass door assembly having a magnetic slide-typed blind system of the invention. The same construction is also applicable to windows. Further, the shown left/right typed blind can be modified simply with an up/down typed blind.

As shown in FIG. 6, a glass door 100 having an interior roll blind 101 has a pair of panes 110 and 120, horizontal frames 180 and 185, and vertical frames 170 and 175. An operational handle 150 for a magnetic slide device is mounted on a guide rail 160 which is attached across the glass door 100. As shown more clearly in FIG. 7, a winding means 105 with a spring bar 106 for winding and unwinding the roll blind 101 is installed in a vertical frame 170 of the glass door 100. The roll blind 101 is wound into the winding means 105 in the vertical frame 170 when the blind is opened. The roll blind 101 is unwound from the winding means 105 to close the glass door 100 partially or completely in accordance in accordance with movement of the handle 150. The roll blind 101 and the winding means 105 of various sizes are purchased in the market as roll blind, roll screen, etc.

The winding means 105 applies torque to the roll blind 101 to be wound around the spring bar 106 mounted in the winding means 105. Accordingly, when the handle 50 is moved to close the pane 110 and 120, the winding means 105 draws the roll blind 101 flat by its spring force. However, in case of a wide glass door or window, lateral edges of the roll blind 101 may sag down owing to its weight. In order to prevent the sag, a plurality of clips 102 mounted slidably on the horizontal frames 180 and 185 may be used to grip the roll blind 101. The clips 102 are made of soft and thin plastic so that they can also be wound around the spring bar 106 of the winding means 105.

Further, at least one magnets 103 may be attached along the length on the front edge or a front member fixed to the front edge of the roll blind 101. And at least one magnets 176 may be attached on the corresponding inner surface of the vertical frame 175 with their polarity reversed to the magnets 103 so that the roll blind 101 can screen off the whole pane 20 with its front edge locked to the vertical frame 175 when the roll blind 101 is completely closed.

The magnetic slide-typed blind system of the invention provides construction of a completely sealed window or glass door 100 with a roll blind 101 enclosed air-tight by a pair of panes 110 and 120 and a plurality of frames 170, 175, 180 and 185 without any mechanical or electrical wire connection between the interior roll blind 101 and the outer driving device. In the magnetic slide-typed blind system of the invention, the roll blind 101 is activated horizontally left to right or vice versa (up and down in vertical-typed blind system) by the handle 150 not penetrated into the pane but located in contact with the pane 120. In accordance with movement of the handle 150, the roll blind 101 is extended from the winding means 105 to close the panes 110 and 120 or retracted into the winding means 105 to open the panes 110 and 120.

The on/off switching means of the magnetic slide device provides a turning handle 150 to be used as a doorknob. The turning handle 150 can maintain a doorknob position at the roll blind closed position by using the on/off switching means. When the turning handle 150 is moved to the opposite position from the door knob position of the roll blind opened position, the turning handle 150 can be returned along the guide rail 160 to its door knob position without closing the roll blind by switching the turning handle 150 to “off” mode for decoupling the magnetic connection.

Combination of the Magnetic Slide-typed and Conventional Blind Systems

A pair of the magnetic slide-typed blind systems of the invention may be used in a fixed wide window, a patio door or a sliding window side by side. However, it may be combined with the conventional curtains, vertical blinds, horizontal blinds, roll blinds etc (referring to “conventional blind”). Referring to FIG. 8, an example to combine the magnetic slide-typed blind system and conventional blind system is explained.

FIG. 8 shows combination of the magnetic slide-typed blind system 200 and the conventional blind system 300 illustrated as a vertical. For illustrative purpose, the magnetic slide-typed blind system 200 and the conventional blind system 300 takes a ratio of 50:50 of the entire window. However, the ratio may be changed according to customer's needs. Further, FIG. 8 shows that both the blind systems work cooperatively, however, the blind systems are also constructed as each of the blind systems works independently.

In the cooperatively actuated blind systems, movement of the handle 250 of the magnetic slide-typed blind system 200 effects automatically opening and closing the conventional blind system 300. The driving or control device for actuating the blind systems cooperatively may be constructed either of a manual device using springs and wires and an automatic device using an electrical motor(s) and gear assembly which are not shown. Such driving or control methods and devices have been developed variously and can be purchased in. As an example, an automatically opening and closing system of the vertical is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,637,492 (Oct. 28, 2003).

In FIG. 8, the handle 250, which moves the roll blind 201 as described above, also drives the blind 301 of the conventional blind system cooperatively through the winding systems 290 and 390 as illustrated schematically. The conventional blind system 300 may be a blind system with the interior blind enclosed and sealed by double panes and frames like the blind system of the invention.

The winding system 290 may be constructed mechanically with wire, pulley and gear assembly to cooperate with the winding system of the conventional blind system 300. Preferably, the winding system 290 may be constructed with an electrical device to switch a motor driving device 390 which drives the conventional blind system 300. When the handle 250 of the invention moves horizontally left to right or vice versa, the motor driving device 390 draws or retracts the wire for actuating the conventional blind 201. Such combination of the magnetic slide-typed blind system and the conventional blind system affords a complex bind system used for a wide window, a patio door, a sliding windows, etc.

Although the present invention has been described in connection with preferred embodiments thereof, many variations and modifications will now become apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the present invention should be limited not by the specific disclosure herein, but only by the appended claims. 

1. A magnetic slide device comprising: a plurality of walls and frames defining a sealed interior space; a magnet fixture which is attached on an movable body, preferably a plate or a sheet, located in the sealed interior space and has a magnet(s) fixed in contact with a wall defining the sealed interior space; and an operational handle which is located outside of the sealed interior space and has a magnet(s) in contact with the wall of the sealed interior space and facing the magnet(s) of the fixture with its polarity reversed thereto.
 2. The magnetic slide device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a guide rail attached across the wall, in which the operational handle is mounted slidably.
 3. The magnetic slide device as claimed in claim 1, in which the operational handle has a housing and a turning handle mounted rotatably within the housing and the magnets of the fixture and the turning handle are aligned with their two poles N and S disposed on the wall side by side, respectively.
 4. The magnetic slide device as claimed in claim 3, in which the fixture and the turning handle includes a pair of magnets respectively, and magnets of the pair are spaced apart and face the wall with their polarity reversed to each other such as poles N and S or poles S and N
 5. A magnetic slide-typed blind system including: a sealed window or glass door assembly having a pair of panes and a plurality of frames; a roll blind installed between the pair of panes; a winding means located on a frame and connected to an edge of the roll blind for winding and unwinding the roll blind; a fixture attached on the other edge portion of the roll blind and located in contact with a pane of the sealed window or glass door assembly; an operational handle having a magnet(s) located outside of the pane of the assembly in which the magnet(s) is arranged with its polarity reversed to the magnet(s) of the fixture attached on the roll blind; and a rail member for guiding the operational handle, which is installed across the pane.
 6. The magnetic slide-typed blind system as claimed in claim 5, in which the operational handle has a housing and a turning handle mounted rotatably within the housing, and the magnets of the fixture and the turning handle are aligned with their two poles N and S are disposed on the wall side by side, respectively.
 7. The magnetic slide-typed blind system as claimed in claim 6, in which the magnets of the fixture and the turning handle comprise a pair of magnets respectively, and they are spaced apart and face the wall with their polarity reversed to each other such as poles N and S or poles S and N.
 8. The magnetic slide-typed blind system as claimed in claim 5, further including: at least one magnet attached along the length on the front edge of the roll blind, and at least one magnet attached on the corresponding inner surface of the vertical frame with its polarity reversed to the magnet of the roll blind.
 9. The magnetic slide-typed blind system as claimed in claim 5, further including: a plurality of clips mounted slidably at least on upper side of the horizontal frames of the sealed window or glass door assembly to grip lateral side end of the roll blind.
 10. A combined blind system comprising the magnetic slide-typed blind system according to claim 5; and a conventional blind system(s).
 11. The combined blind system as claimed in claim 10, in which the conventional blind system(s) is cooperatively actuated with the magnetic slide-typed system through a wire winding/unwinding device.
 12. The combined blind system as claimed in claim 10, in which the conventional blind system(s) is cooperatively actuated with the magnetic slide-typed system through an electrical device.
 13. The magnetic slide device as claimed in claim 2, in which the operational handle has a housing and a turning handle mounted rotatably within the housing and the magnets of the fixture and the turning handle are aligned with their two poles N and S disposed on the wall side by side, respectively.
 14. The magnetic slide-typed blind system as claimed in claim 6, further including: at least one magnet attached along the length on the front edge of the roll blind, and at least one magnet attached on the corresponding inner surface of the vertical frame with its polarity reversed to the magnet of the roll blind.
 15. The magnetic slide-typed blind system as claimed in claim 7, further including: at least one magnet attached along the length on the front edge of the roll blind, and at least one magnet attached on the corresponding inner surface of the vertical frame with its polarity reversed to the magnet of the roll blind.
 16. The magnetic slide-typed blind system as claimed in claim 6, further including: a plurality of clips mounted slidably at least on upper side of the horizontal frames of the sealed window or glass door assembly to grip lateral side end of the roll blind.
 17. The magnetic slide-typed blind system as claimed in claim 7, further including: a plurality of clips mounted slidably at least on upper side of the horizontal frames of the sealed window or glass door assembly to grip lateral side end of the roll blind.
 18. A combined blind system comprising the magnetic slide-typed blind system according to claim 6; and a conventional blind system(s).
 19. A combined blind system comprising the magnetic slide-typed blind system according to claim 7; and a conventional blind system(s).
 20. A combined blind system comprising the magnetic slide-typed blind system according to claim 8; and a conventional blind system(s).
 21. A combined blind system comprising the magnetic slide-typed blind system according to claim 9; and a conventional blind system(s). 